The Mountain Hunting Thread

My dad gave up flying due to the cost of raising us kids ….. job stability essentially.
I know that he regrets it probably but I also think the death of his close friend and flying buddy, Fred May.
Fred flew out of Vancouver at the float plan docks and I still have loads of memories fishing off that dock for flounders and bullheads as a wee kid.
In my mind still to this day, Fred was larger than life and all the pics of his adventures flying the beavers and twin otters up and down the west coast are still with me in my memories.
My dad had all his ratings to fly float planes commercially but I think after Fred passed in the plane crash my Dad couldn't get back in a plane. I could be wrong.

Some of the pics in this thread from the airplanes are just incredible and to be dropped off in a bowl like in that last picture Ardent posted..... I really gotta do that someday
 
Angus, a 2000 foot lake in the alpine is impressive, you've got me beat by a country mile there, that lake looks high too. I don't do 2000 foot alpine lakes and I don't think the 180 ever would, I've heard the CAPs will improve that a bit over the EDOs though. That said as a resident hunter I've got the whole province to pick my spots from and there are lots of great lakes. Quite a handful of the top sheep lakes are more than 10,000 feet long. I did fly in and out of Lorna once, 6300 ft high and 6300 ft long, it was interesting...

You guys seem to be enjoying some airplane pics so I'll add a couple from early April hunting bears with the kids. We were too early for the bears but it was good to get out and walk in the bush. This is at the strip at the North end of Stave, air or boat access only but once you're there, there's a whole road network. Went in on wheels and the increase performance of the plane was a real treat, and when you land no docking and tying up, just park and have fun. It was mountain hunting, just closer to the bottom of the mountain than the top.
keigmy7.jpg

mSmiqn6.jpg
 
That’s awesome, must feel supercharged with the floats off. :d

Yea those tiny alpine puddles are a serious challenge, and you nailed it for outfitting we only have so many to choose from and new ground is at a premium, so you work some really difficult spots at times. I aborted that lake three times in a row once on departure, dropping 20-50lbs more gear each attempt. Turns out I would have made it each time after I committed and went for it. Got off with a third of the lake to spare with a float roll, but by mid lake wasn’t feeling it each of those aborts and have to stick to the hard line. Got a few grey hairs doing gear hauls out of those lakes.

I once got stuck on this lake for several days due to downflowing air, at the base of a glacier which of course is east facing. Prevailing westerly tumbles over the top, charges down the glacier as cooled heavy air, giving you a near permanent 10kt (and sometimes much worse) tailwind. I couldn’t take 10kts downwind, let alone trying to climb into heavily down flowing air towards the mountain to turn, so waited for a wind switch. Wasn’t sure it was ever coming. Made me glad I carry lots of freeze dried. This is inbound in the deceptively calm conditions you can get.

XrrbhYB.jpg
 
riversrest said:
It's deviating to flying second hand planes here instead of mountain hunting.
Click to expand...

Planes are how to get into the best mountian hunting locations so its all related and the pics are what we are all here for, Animals, mountians, lakes, rivers, glaciers, trees and alpine areas also people or vehicles that get/got them there

This whole thread seems to be a way of life that 75% of canadians will never get to experience

I got my 2 week stewart, telegraph creek, atlin trip canceled due to covid 19 and now its looking like next year if stuff doesnt open up this summer. So im enjoying all these pics and the talk that goes with it.
 
I can think of worse places to be stuck for a few days.

Ardent said:
That’s awesome, must feel supercharged with the floats off. :d

Yea those tiny alpine puddles are a serious challenge, and you nailed it for outfitting we only have so many to choose from and new ground is at a premium, so you work some really difficult spots at times. I aborted that lake three times in a row once on departure, dropping 20-50lbs more gear each attempt. Turns out I would have made it each time after I committed and went for it. Got off with a third of the lake to spare with a float roll, but by mid lake wasn’t feeling it each of those aborts and have to stick to the hard line. Got a few grey hairs doing gear hauls out of those lakes.

I once got stuck on this lake for several days due to downflowing air, at the base of a glacier which of course is east facing. Prevailing westerly tumbles over the top, charges down the glacier as cooled heavy air, giving you a near permanent 10kt (and sometimes much worse) tailwind. I couldn’t take 10kts downwind, let alone trying to climb into heavily down flowing air towards the mountain to turn, so waited for a wind switch. Wasn’t sure it was ever coming. Made me glad I carry lots of freeze dried. This is inbound in the deceptively calm conditions you can get.

XrrbhYB.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Is that Lorna lake? I've been wanting to hike that area out of Goldbridge for a long time now. I just never got around to it. There's a network of trails in that area. Beautiful country.
 
Ardent said:
That’s an unnamed lake on the North Coast just south of Alaska, should probably call it Contemplation Lake. ;) As I had plenty of time there for that, unplanned.
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I spent a few days at "Contemplation Rapids," when my canoe submarined in a boil, never to be seen again (by me)... fortunately most of my gear was in float bags, so I was fairly comfortable while I contemplated.
 
Ardent said:
Suppose there’s a number of causes of ‘Contemplation’ in the geography of Canada :d At the time wasn’t an experience I’d call great, but looking back will be one of the ones that sticks with us decades from now like...

Contemplation Bar / Stump in the river. :eek:
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Tell me about it...! ;)
 
Many, many, Septembers ago, we found a party of four in two canoes on the Big Salmon River that had swamped both canoes. They were cold, and there was gear everywhere, floating and on the bottom. Made sure everyone was okay, then cut some long willow poles with forks left on the bottom for them to hook gear out of the water. While they did that, we spent a couple of hours retrieving and bringing gear back upstream for them. Started a fire to help them dry out, made sure they had enough wood to keep warm that night, and gave them enough food to last the rest of their trip before we carried on. It was a good lesson for our kids in many ways.

We found more of their gear snagged in brush and floating on the river as we travelled, and stashed it where it would be easy for them to see.

Were a day ahead of them, and had caught plenty of grayling to supplement our supplies when we got a moose. IIRC, they caught up with us while we were taking care of it, and had moose for supper with us that night. They had found all the gear we stashed and enjoyed their first moose meat dinner, too.

Memories, eh?

Ted
 
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Evanguy said:
Planes are how to get into the best mountian hunting locations so its all related and the pics are what we are all here for, Animals, mountians, lakes, rivers, glaciers, trees and alpine areas also people or vehicles that get/got them there

This whole thread seems to be a way of life that 75% of canadians will never get to experience

I got my 2 week stewart, telegraph creek, atlin trip canceled due to covid 19 and now its looking like next year if stuff doesnt open up this summer. So im enjoying all these pics and the talk that goes with it.
Click to expand...

Going there by foot on two day hikes were the best places to go before the Outfitters had to buy planes in order to get their incapable and/or lazy clients of doing so into the good areas.

It went downhill from there.

To all the flatland posters please show some pictures of your mountains close to home where you've been successful.
 
riversrest said:
Going there by foot on two day hikes were the best places to go before the Outfitters had to buy planes in order to get their incapable and/or lazy clients of doing so into the good areas.

It went downhill from there.

To all the flatland posters please show some pictures of your mountains close to home where you've been successful.
Click to expand...

Wow. The other people weren't kidding. You actually are a d ick
 
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